Due to the vagaries of the U.S. tariff schedules, it has become important to produce, import, and sell shoes in which the sole presents a certain percentage, presently at least 51 percent, of fabric that contacts the ground (See U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US-2002-0152638-A1, published Oct. 24, 2002.)
A number of recent patents and patent applications directed to shoes or shoe soles meeting the requirements of the Tariff Schedules for reduced tariffs have issued or been published. The broad idea of a fabric or a felt insert on an outsole is old, see Walters U.S. Pat. No. 3,844,483 (1888). Even a fabric insert with a rubber backing has been patented, see Oakley U.S. Pat. No. 1,811,803 (1931). More recent patents and applications include Otis U.S. Pat. No. 6,430,844 (2002), and Safdeye et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,571,491 (2003). So far as applicants are aware, the only recent patent application that has acknowledged the real reason for the flurry of activity in this area is U.S. 2002-0152638-A1, published Oct. 24, 2002.